(Newport, Oregon) – You can help out science on the central Oregon coast with a unique event that calls on the average citizen.

It will be after Christmas on January 2, but that is the day of the Christmas Bird Count, where and volunteers are needed to help count birds in the Yaquina Bay area of Newport that Saturday, from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. You'll also be able to take in the beauty of other beach areas nearby. Bird enthusiasts of all ages and skill levels, even beginners, are encouraged to participate in this free citizen science event. During the 116th Audubon Christmas Bird Count volunteers will count as many species and number of individual birds as they can from sunup to sundown.

Considered the longest running Citizen Science survey in the world, Christmas Bird Count data provides critical data on population trends on this part of the central Oregon coast.

“Tens of thousands of volunteers know that it is also a great way to meet new people, explore new habitat, learn more about our feathered friends or simply sharpen your birdwatching identification skills,” said Dawn Harris, who organizes and compiles the local count.

The Yaquina Bay count is within a 15 mile diameter circle that extends from Yaquina Head southward to Seal Rocks and eastward to Toledo. About half of the Count Circle is offshore. The local count is sponsored by the Yaquina Birders and Naturalists. During Yaquina Bay’s last count in January 2015, some 40 birdwatchers in the field and at backyard feeders recorded 152 species of birds.